Traditional Teochew Opera Appreciation : Nam Hwa Blazes 万紫千红在南华

I spent an enjoyable Sunday afternoon with fellow Teochews at a Teochew opera performance presented by Nam Hwa Opera Limited.

'Nam Hwa Blazes' will be staged every 3 months to preserve and promote Teochew opera to local and international audiences. The next 3 performances are on 12 June, 11 September and 11 December 2016, 3 pm at Aliwal Arts Centre.

I requested to be at the troupe's premises 2 hours earlier today so I could take some shots of the performers when they were putting on their elaborate make-up, costumes and hairdo.

The performers, although rushed for time, kindly let me take photos of them in the dressing room. It was fascinating watching the skilful masters doing the make-up and hairdo.

I adore the elaborate costumes and hair accessories of Teochew opera. I yearn to have a chance to be dressed up in a Teochew opera costume after seeing the lady performers looking so beautiful after their make-up.

Ten minutes before the performance start, I went down to the theatre. Glad to see a strong audience turnout with a few foreign visitors and a Malay family. Volunteers had to keep adding more chairs as people streamed in.

A live Teochew orchestra accompaniment was on hand as the performers present excerpts from several popular Teochew operas. Subtitles in English and Chinese were available on a huge screen next to the stage.

Members from Nam Hwa's classic Teochew singing class performed on stage for the first time.

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3月13日南华儒剧社于阿里哇艺术中心呈献“万紫千红在南华”系列的潮剧潮曲推广演出。演出附有中英文字幕，且有现场潮乐队伴奏。

今天演出的剧目和演员有 :《穆桂英招亲》（马秀宝、陈玉勇）、《盘夫》（罗兰卿、陆玉娥、张丽群）、《见血书》（许谦和）、小品《新加坡潮州人》（刘忠勇、王汉英）、《观灯》（曾君弼、陈玉勇、黄映瑞、张丽群、陈佩锦、庄雅兰）。

南华经典潮曲演唱班学员们也首次登台展现歌艺。

接下来还有3场演出，分别于6月12日、9月11日和12月11日的下午3时，在阿里哇艺术中心举行。入场免费，先到者先就座。

有兴趣者可致电96770209（南华儒剧社）或电邮namhwaopera@gmail.com